[http://freedesktop.org/wiki/Software/gummiboot Gummiboot] is a UEFI boot manager written by Kay Sievers and Harald Hoyer. It is simple to configure, but can only start EFI executables, the Linux kernel (with CONFIG_EFI_STUB enabled), grub.efi, and such.

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[http://freedesktop.org/wiki/Software/gummiboot Gummiboot] is a UEFI boot loader written by Kay Sievers and Harald Hoyer. It is simple to configure, but can only start EFI executables, the Linux kernel (with CONFIG_EFI_STUB enabled), grub.efi, and such.

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{{Note|

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In the following steps replace {{ic|$esp}} with path to your [[UEFI#Create_an_UEFI_System_Partition_in_Linux|EFI System Partition]], which is normally mounted on {{ic|/boot/efi}} (although some users have it on {{ic|/boot}} directly).

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== Installing ==

== Installing ==

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Install {{Pkg|gummiboot-efi}} from [extra] and copy the bootloader to the EFI partition:

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{{Note|{{ic|/usr/bin/gummiboot}} requires {{ic|efivarfs}} support in the kernel and requires it to be mounted at {{ic|/sys/firmware/efi/efivars}}. Mounting of efivarfs at this path is done automatically by systemd if the kernel supports efivarfs. LTS kernels do not support efivarfs. In such cases, the user needs to use {{ic|efibootmgr}} to create a boot entry for gummiboot.}}

Then add it to the boot configuration: (only needs to be done once; skip this when upgrading)

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{{Note|If {{ic|gummiboot}} fails to create a boot entry, check for existence of {{ic|/sys/firmware/efi/efivars/dump-*}} files. If they exist, delete them, reboot and retry {{ic|gummiboot}} again. If even this fails, retry {{ic|gummiboot}} after booting with {{ic|efi_no_storage_paranoia}} kernel parameter. If all these fail, try creating the boot entry using {{ic|efibootmgr}} or UEFI Shell v2 {{ic|bcfg}} command.}}

Install {{Pkg|gummiboot}} from [extra] and run the following to install gummiboot:

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# gummiboot install

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where /dev/sdX is the drive and Y is the partition number of your UEFISYS partition.

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{{Note|gummiboot assumes that your EFI System Partition is mounted on {{ic|/boot}}. If your ESP is mounted on {{ic|/boot/efi}} you have to call the following gummiboot install command with the additional {{ic|--path}} switch. This also means that gummiboot will not be able to update itself automatically and you will have to call {{ic|1=gummiboot --path=/boot/efi update}} after every package update. Additionally you will have to make sure that the kernel and initramfs are copied onto the ESP as gummiboot can't load EFI binaries from other partitions. It is therefore strongly recommended to mount your ESP to {{ic|/boot}} if you use gummiboot. The rest of this article will assume that your ESP is mounted on {{ic|/boot}}.}}

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{{note|{{ic|efibootmgr}} can be used only when already booted in UEFI mode. If you do not have another UEFI bootloader set up, you can either run {{ic|gummiboot.efi}} from the UEFI Shell, or copy it to the "default" location {{ic|$esp/EFI/boot/bootx64.efi}} for x86_64 systems.}}

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This will automatically copy the gummiboot binary to your EFI System Partition and create a boot entry in the EFI Boot Manager. You should however still be able to boot gummiboot as it copies the binary to the default EFI binary location on your ESP ({{ic|/boot/EFI/BOOT/BOOTX64.EFI}} on x64 systems). Note that the installation process has to be done only once, updating will happen automatically by the post_install script of {{Pkg|gummiboot}} during package updates.

== Configuring ==

== Configuring ==

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The basic configuration is kept in {{ic|$esp/loader/loader.conf}}, with just two possible configuration options:

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The basic configuration is kept in {{ic|/boot/loader/loader.conf}}, with just two possible configuration options:

* {{ic|default}} – default entry to select (without the {{ic|.conf}} suffix); can be a wildcard like {{ic|arch-*}}

* {{ic|default}} – default entry to select (without the {{ic|.conf}} suffix); can be a wildcard like {{ic|arch-*}}

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* {{ic|timeout}} – menu timeout in seconds. If this is not set, the menu will only be shows when you hold the space key while booting.

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* {{ic|timeout}} – menu timeout in seconds. If this is not set, the menu will only be shown when you hold the space key while booting.

Example:

Example:

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{{hc|$esp/loader/loader.conf|

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{{hc|/boot/loader/loader.conf|

default arch

default arch

timeout 4

timeout 4

Line 42:

Line 33:

== Adding boot entries ==

== Adding boot entries ==

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Gummiboot searches for boot menu items in {{ic|/boot/loader/entries/*.conf}} – each file found must contain exactly one boot entry. The possible options are:

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{{note|

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If you have separate partitions for {{ic|/boot}} and {{ic|/boot/efi}}, you '''must''' copy the kernel and initramfs to the EFI partition. Gummiboot does not support loading kernels from other partitions than itself. See the section below on how to automate this.

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}}

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Gummiboot searches for boot menu items in {{ic|$esp/loader/entries/*.conf}} – each file found must contain exactly one boot entry. The possible options are:

* {{ic|title}} – operating system name. '''Required.'''

* {{ic|title}} – operating system name. '''Required.'''

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* {{ic|title-version}} – kernel version, shown only when multiple entries with same title exist. Optional.

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* {{ic|version}} – kernel version, shown only when multiple entries with same title exist. Optional.

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* {{ic|title-machine}} – machine identifier (usually first few letters from {{ic|/etc/machine-id}}, shown only when multiple entries with same title+version exist. Optional.

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* {{ic|machine-id}} – machine identifier from {{ic|/etc/machine-id}}, shown only when multiple entries with same title and version exist. Optional.

* {{ic|efi}} – EFI program to start, relative to your ESP ({{ic|/boot}}); e.g. {{ic|/vmlinuz-linux}}. Either this or {{ic|linux}} (see below) is '''required.'''

* {{ic|options}} – Command-line options to pass to the EFI program. Optional, but you will need at least {{ic|1=initrd=''efipath''}} and {{ic|1=root=''dev''}} if booting Linux.

* {{ic|options}} – Command-line options to pass to the EFI program. Optional, but you will need at least {{ic|1=initrd=''efipath''}} and {{ic|1=root=''dev''}} if booting Linux.

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For Linux, you can specify {{ic|linux ''path-to-vmlinuz''}} and {{ic|initrd ''path-to-initramfs''}}; this will be automatically translated to {{ic|efi ''path''}} and {{ic|1=options initrd=''path''}} – this syntax is only supported for convenience and has no differences in function.

An example entry for Arch Linux:

An example entry for Arch Linux:

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{{hc|$esp/loader/entries/arch.conf|2=

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{{hc|/boot/loader/entries/arch.conf|2=

title Arch Linux

title Arch Linux

linux /vmlinuz-linux

linux /vmlinuz-linux

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Line 56:

}}

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For Linux, you can specify {{ic|linux ''path-to-vmlinuz''}} and {{ic|initrd ''path-to-initramfs''}}; this will be automatically translated to {{ic|efi ''path''}} and {{ic|1=options initrd=''path''}} – this syntax is only supported for convenience and has no differences in function.

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You can also add other EFI programs such as {{ic|\EFI\arch\grub.efi}}.

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{{Note|Gummiboot will automatically check for binaries of a Windows Installation ({{ic|\EFI\Microsoft\Boot\Bootmgfw.efi}}) or an UEFI Shell ({{ic|\shellx64.efi}}) and display entries for them, so you don't have to create these manually.}}

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You can also add other EFI programs such as {{ic|\EFI\arch\grub.efi}} or {{ic|\EFI\Microsoft\Boot\Bootmgfw.efi}} (the Windows 7 boot manager). The EFI Shell, if installed, will be shown automatically.

Revision as of 19:25, 17 June 2013

Gummiboot is a UEFI boot loader written by Kay Sievers and Harald Hoyer. It is simple to configure, but can only start EFI executables, the Linux kernel (with CONFIG_EFI_STUB enabled), grub.efi, and such.

Contents

Installing

Note: /usr/bin/gummiboot requires efivarfs support in the kernel and requires it to be mounted at /sys/firmware/efi/efivars. Mounting of efivarfs at this path is done automatically by systemd if the kernel supports efivarfs. LTS kernels do not support efivarfs. In such cases, the user needs to use efibootmgr to create a boot entry for gummiboot.

Note: If gummiboot fails to create a boot entry, check for existence of /sys/firmware/efi/efivars/dump-* files. If they exist, delete them, reboot and retry gummiboot again. If even this fails, retry gummiboot after booting with efi_no_storage_paranoia kernel parameter. If all these fail, try creating the boot entry using efibootmgr or UEFI Shell v2 bcfg command.

Install gummiboot from [extra] and run the following to install gummiboot:

# gummiboot install

Note: gummiboot assumes that your EFI System Partition is mounted on /boot. If your ESP is mounted on /boot/efi you have to call the following gummiboot install command with the additional --path switch. This also means that gummiboot will not be able to update itself automatically and you will have to call gummiboot --path=/boot/efi update after every package update. Additionally you will have to make sure that the kernel and initramfs are copied onto the ESP as gummiboot can't load EFI binaries from other partitions. It is therefore strongly recommended to mount your ESP to /boot if you use gummiboot. The rest of this article will assume that your ESP is mounted on /boot.

This will automatically copy the gummiboot binary to your EFI System Partition and create a boot entry in the EFI Boot Manager. You should however still be able to boot gummiboot as it copies the binary to the default EFI binary location on your ESP (/boot/EFI/BOOT/BOOTX64.EFI on x64 systems). Note that the installation process has to be done only once, updating will happen automatically by the post_install script of gummiboot during package updates.

Configuring

The basic configuration is kept in /boot/loader/loader.conf, with just two possible configuration options:

default – default entry to select (without the .conf suffix); can be a wildcard like arch-*

timeout – menu timeout in seconds. If this is not set, the menu will only be shown when you hold the space key while booting.

Example:

/boot/loader/loader.conf

default arch
timeout 4

Note that both options can be changed in the boot menu itself, which will store them as EFI variables.

Adding boot entries

Gummiboot searches for boot menu items in /boot/loader/entries/*.conf – each file found must contain exactly one boot entry. The possible options are:

title – operating system name. Required.

version – kernel version, shown only when multiple entries with same title exist. Optional.

machine-id – machine identifier from /etc/machine-id, shown only when multiple entries with same title and version exist. Optional.

efi – EFI program to start, relative to your ESP (/boot); e.g. /vmlinuz-linux. Either this or linux (see below) is required.

options – Command-line options to pass to the EFI program. Optional, but you will need at least initrd=efipath and root=dev if booting Linux.

For Linux, you can specify linux path-to-vmlinuz and initrd path-to-initramfs; this will be automatically translated to efi path and options initrd=path – this syntax is only supported for convenience and has no differences in function.

Note: Gummiboot will automatically check for binaries of a Windows Installation (\EFI\Microsoft\Boot\Bootmgfw.efi) or an UEFI Shell (\shellx64.efi) and display entries for them, so you don't have to create these manually.